Free audio book download from audiobooksync.com August 2011.OK, this audio book wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. It is geared to middle school kids and I think that boys would enjoy this story. The audio version was OK with the narrator doing the voices of each character. He wasn't too believable for the girls, but, oh well.Storm Runners is the story of Chase and his father the owner of Masters of Disasters, a company that chases storms and helps people rebuild. Chase and his father are in Florida just as Hurricane Emily, a category 5 hurricane is set to make landfall. Chase and his friends are sent home on a school bus as the hurricane approaches and the wind sweeps the bus off the road into water. The bus driver dies and Chase and his friends must brave the weather and hungry alligators in order to get to safety.Having listened to this a few weeks after Hurricane Sandy hit the NY/NJ region, I feel that this story was really unbelievable. *What adults would send children by school bus home as a hurricane is fast approaching? Surely a safer place to ride out a storm would be a school gymnasium rather than a school bus.*The children were able to walk (albeit with difficulty) in Category 5 Hurricane winds. I don't think so.*The children were able to swim out of danger in Category 5 hurricane winds. Don't think that would be possible.*The adults in charge of the children were idiots.*The kids were way too smart for their age. The story ends on a cliffhanger, so you need to listen to the next book to find out what happens. The audio book version included an interview with the author where he talks about his research into storms and animals. Recommended for middle grades, boys especially.
